Wear-resistant, superabrasive compacts are utilized in a variety of mechanical applications. For example, polycrystalline diamond compacts (“PDCs”) are used in drilling tools (e.g., cutting elements, gage trimmers, etc.), machining equipment, bearing apparatuses, wire-drawing machinery, and in other mechanical apparatuses.
PDCs have found particular utility as superabrasive cutting elements in rotary drill bits, such as roller cone drill bits and fixed cutter drill bits. A PDC cutting element typically includes a superabrasive diamond layer commonly referred to as a diamond table. The diamond table is formed and bonded to a substrate using a high-pressure/high-temperature (“HPHT”) process.
A fixed-cutter rotary drill bit typically includes a number of PDC cutting elements affixed to a bit body. PDC cutting elements are typically brazed directly into a preformed recess formed in the bit body of the fixed-cutter rotary drill bit. In some applications, the substrate of the PDC cutting element may be brazed or otherwise joined to an attachment member, such as a cylindrical backing, which may be secured to the bit body by press-fitting or brazing.